Congress objections to US imaging cuts
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
US industry association AdvaMed says it is heartened that 69 members of Congress have written to House speaker Nancy Pelosi to express serious concerns about the impact of additional cuts (in the so-called CHAMP Act) in medical imaging services on patients. A bipartisan group has also expressed support for the Access to Medicare Imaging Act of 2007 (HR 1293), which has 169 sponsors in the House and would impose a two-year moratorium on the Deficit Reduction Omnibus Reconciliation Act (DRA) payment reductions while an impact study is ongoing. Reimbursement has been cut already this year (see Clinica No 1236, p 2). The association supports instead an accreditation programme and appropriateness criteria to help keep costs down.